


What Makes an Angel Fall In Love?

by simandzayn



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: F/M, Friendship, Hate to Love, Love/Hate, Sexual Content
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-12
Updated: 2016-04-07
Packaged: 2018-05-13 10:10:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 21,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5703802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/simandzayn/pseuds/simandzayn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Emily Prentiss is the newest member of the FBI's Behavioural Analysis Unit. Her unit chief Aaron Hotchner did not approve of her transfer and therefore had it embedded in his mind that her joining the BAU after a questionable shooting between his former team member was due to her holding a political agenda. SSA Emily Prentiss eventually proves to him that, that is not the case what so ever, SSA Aaron Hotchner eventually accepts her as a part of his team where their friendship develops both in work and personally. </p><p> </p><p>How much do both Emily Prentiss and Aaron Hotchner have to go through before they give in to what they both need. Each other.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Transfer?

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first Criminal Minds fanfiction with the couple of Aaron Hotchner and Emily Prentiss. My goal is to have their relationship built up slowly to make it seem more real and genuine.

Chapter 1.

Agent Aaron Hotchner sighed as he felt the sharp pain stinging at the back of his eye lids, placing his fountain tip pen on the oak wood desk, he allowed his head to glance towards the clock. The bright red numbers glaring back at him in somewhat of a daunting manner as they read 10.59pm. 

Had Aaron honestly allowed himself to work this late, yet again? Especially after he told his wife he would be home early enough for them to have a discussion… His subconscious tauntingly reminded him that, that was the exact reason he had stayed back at work so late. After slowing rubbing his eyes with his fingers for a moment, he contemplated his options and decided that his warm bed and seeing his son beat dealing with the political bureaucratic side of his job, so he slowly made his way out of the BAU headquarters in Quantico, Virginia and took the memorized route back to his house.

Aaron walked as quietly through the front door of his house as he could, caution levels on extreme as he knew better than to wake his 18 month old son at this ungodly hour, fully aware that if Jack were to awake, Hotchner wouldn’t get another wink of sleep until this time tomorrow, if he was lucky. As he crawled through his house like a fly on a wall, he ducked into his son’s room and gave his sleeping child a kiss on his forehead goodnight. “Always kiss your children goodnight, even if they are already asleep.” – H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

Sinking into his bed, the clock struck to 11.52pm and he closed his eyes with an empty sigh as he begged sleep to come and embody him, as he knew that as every minute that ticked by, the 6.30am alarm was becoming increasingly closer. 

However, Aaron wasn’t awoken at 6.30 by the causal Marimba tone his body had become accustom to hearing at dawn, yet instead he was awoken by the sound of his ringtone and in a state of shock, he shot up in his bed, desperately praying the time wasn’t too late, thinking he had slept through his alarm. However to his relief, his clock only read 6.18am and he sighed before blindly reaching for his phone on his bedside table, sliding the screen across and attempted to sound much more awake than he truly was.

“Hotchner.”   
“Hotch, It’s JJ I’m so sorry I know it’s early but it’s urgent, how soon can you be here?”

JJ was never one to drag Hotch away from Haley and Jack unless it was of ut-most importance and therefore knew it had to be something significant enough to have him get to the office right away. 

-  
it was 8.30 by the time Hotch was sitting in his desk chair, the same position he was in less than 12 hours ago as he tried to fill in some paper work before his team’s communication liaison SSA Jennifer Jareau collected him for the team briefing, yet he became distracted as he heard his door click open and a bundle of a nervous laugh filled the empty space, Aaron glanced up and the breathe was whipped right out of his lungs. 

In walked – well, more like stumbled – what Hotch was fairly sure to be the most beautiful human being he had ever laid eyes on. Her hair short and dark, her eyes dark yet holding a sense of warm behind them, her cheeks a flushed rose colour, her skin seemed milky and fair which was a major contrast to her full lips. “Agent Hotchner?” the girl beamed brightly and only then had Aaron realized he had been gawking at the Snow White look-a-like and abruptly shot up from his seat in attempt to seem professional.

“I’m.. Agent Emily Prentiss.” The girl breathed again, her voice holding a sense of eagerness, and only once she abruptly dropped her box of items on his chair did Aaron notice she had been holding something. 

“How do you do..” Aaron started, holding his hand out in greeting before realization dawned upon him “OH! You’re.. Ambassador Prentiss’ daughter! I worked for your mother doing security clearances as one of my first commands. I believe you were off to.. Brown at the time?” the statement ended as a question and only then had he noticed they had been shaking hands for what seemed to be much longer than appropriate and he watched as a sheepish grin emerged onto her face 

“Actually it was Yale” proudness seeped out of her tone like water falling through a hole of a drink bottle “I’ve been in the Bureau almost.. 10 years now.” She ended and Aaron felt himself doing the mental maths in his head 

“Oh god, don’t tell me that, has it really been that long?”   
“I’m afraid so, Sir.”  
Aaron darted a question that could fill the silence that floated amongst them  
“Your parents well?” He asked it as a question, although it seemed as though it was common knowledge, out of politeness, Agent Prentiss nodded with a friendly smile plastered on her face as she let out a “Yeah they’re good.” And finally the deal breaker had to come, Aaron bit the bullet 

“Can I help you with something, Agent Prentiss?”

“Well I was actually hoping you could tell me where to put my stuff..” Prentiss mewled slowly, gesturing to the box Aaron noticed moments ago and before he could reply with a robotic answer, confusion flooded his entire body

“I’m sorry?”

“I’m supposed to start here, today.. At the BAU…” Prentiss quickly shuffled through the box that appeared to be much too heavy for her own good before she found the paper she was looking for and handed it to Hotch, eyes wide with hope and confusion. 

“I’m sorry to say this, Agent Prentiss, but you have been misinformed..” He stated regretfully as he handed the paperwork back to her, slowly coming up with a mildly aggressive speech as to why this was an inconvenience and she should just go back to were she came from before – once again, JJ saved him by opening his door and announcing the team was reading for the briefing. 

“I’m sorry, have a good day, Agent.” Hotch stated rather sharply as he briskly walked past her, out of his office and towards the round table room, passing his equal, SSA Jason Gideon on the way and briefly wondered if he had approved of Agent Prentiss’ transfer to the Behavioral Analysis Unit, but to his correctness, Gideon hadn’t known anything about the newest addition to the team and seemed to be as confused as Aaron had been. He did have to admit though, he felt a slight twinge of guilt as he saw the confused and lost look that stuck over Emily Prentiss’ face as she stayed glued outside of his office door, box in hand.


	2. Given the chance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hotch agrees to give Emily Prentiss a chance in the BAU and he just hopes he makes the right decision in doing so.

Chapter 2.

It was too late for the BAU team’s liking when their jet finally touched back down in Washington, DC again. SSA Derek Morgan had complained for half of the trip duration about how the flight has seemed longer before Doctor Spencer Reid started mouthing off statistics about return trips being shorter due to the tail wings being in their favor. Poor Reid didn’t even notice that Morgan had drowned out Reid’s voice by the sound of his music after about 10 seconds of him talking. 

Whilst the rest of them team took off in their cars home, Hotch ignored Gideon’s request to go home and get some rest and instead took the drive to Quantico to finish up some paper work. He had gotten enough sleep on the jet anyhow. 

As per usual, Hotch was the only at the office at this time, the lights were all off except for the flood lights that are always illuminated at night – a protocol for any law enforcement building. Upon entering his office, Hotch could have screamed like a 5 year old girl in shock as he realized there was another human-being currently occupying his couch, however he managed to compose himself and let out a sigh as Emily Prentiss’ brown orbs met his, hope swimming through them like fish in a tank. 

“Please tell me you have not just been sitting there for the last 4 days..” Hotchner began as Agent Prentiss’ stood up. Emily managed to settle his mind as she explained their technical analyst Penelope Garcia had let her know they would be returning this evening and came to see him once she received the news. Hotch made a mental note to have a talk with Garcia about giving the location of the team only to people within a strict list of family, bureaucrats and others per the team’s request to avoid situations like this ever again. 

“This was delivered for you” Prentiss disrupted his train of thought of thought as she handed him a file that contained the horrors of a case in its depths. 

“Agent Prentiss, I admire your ambition but the BAU is a specialized, elite squad. Profiling is a task that we can’t just let anyone who wants to, take a whirl at it.” He knew he was being harsh, and he was being honest her dedication was admirable to him. However, it wasn’t suitable for him to allow any Agent a position just because of their determination. 

“This un-sub is an organized offender..” Agent Prentiss started, strength leaking from her tone, her eyes firmly locked with his as she started profiling the case she had just handed to him, showing her skills and ability and Hotch had to fight to keep his stonic expression on his face, not allowing his surprise at her ability to display on his features. Once Prentiss noticed the same expression after she finished her small profile, she sighed.

“This isn’t a ‘whirl’ Agent Hotchner..” She started, using the same terminology he had only moments prior “I don’t know how the paper work got screwed up, or maybe you believe my parents pulled some strings - which they didn’t, by the way. – I belong in this unit. And all I’m asking you for, is the chance to show you that.” Whilst she held her strong front through her small speech, she saw her demeanour being to crack towards the end, vulnerability began lighten her eyes as she stared at him, brow furrowed slightly as her eyes pleaded with him to give her the chance and maybe it was due to the way her lips moved in an impatient wait that the next words that came out of his mouth were the following.

“I’m not promising anything.. We can give this a trial run” 

“Understood.” She said immediately, her eyes lighting up with excitement and Hotch could see her attempts to wear off the smile that was creeping on her face. 

“We brief new cases every morning at 10am. You can go and see facilities management about a desk.” He ended, trying to keep his stern front yet it threatened to crack as he saw happiness brightening her entire features – similar to a child on Christmas. “You wont be sorry.” She promised, biting her lip to fight back a smile as she quickly rushed out of the room, as though she was afraid he would change his mind. “Smart girl.” Hotch muttered to himself as he sat in his desk chair before he realized he suddenly had no more energy to finish the paperwork tonight, instead he glanced through the blinds of his office window and watched as Agent Emily Prentiss briskly walked through to the elevator and all he could do was hope – for the sake of his team – that he hadn’t made a mistake in hiring the young lady with many political connections.


	3. First Case, First Chance.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meet the team, Agent Prentiss.

Chapter 3. 

“You don’t think I made the wrong decision, do you?” Aaron asked as his wife sat up in the bed as she watched him fixing his tie, just like she had every morning for the last 15 years since he worked in the bureau. 

“No, well, I can’t really give you an honest opinion having never met her or her mother, but what I can say is – you don’t give people real chances, they make one mistake and after that your opinion on them is set and stone.” 

“I do not..” Aaron started before his wife interjected and continued talking 

“You need to give a chance, she wont please you and prove to you that she can do her job with you analyzing her every move under a magnifying glass. Give her the chance to do her job correctly.” Haley looked at him with a stern expression yet he knew she was only being like this since she knew the sort of person he was and she was just trying to help him do what was right for him and his team. “Come back safely” she said, her voice a bit quieter and he sent her a soft smile, throwing his blazer on as he leant over and gave her a quick kiss on her cheek, promising to check in throughout the day as he left to say and bid a farewell to his son who was being occupied by the toys that Garcia had purchased for him. 

After a traffic build up and a few creative strings of curse words, Hotch finally walked through the door to the BAU headquarters just coming on 9.30. About 2 hours later than when he usually arrives. He decided he had enough time to get himself some coffee and speak to the director about some cases that had been sent directly to him through his connections of other bureau offices around the continent. 

At exactly 10am, Hotch walked through the door of the briefing room, already seeing Agent Prentiss seating at the left of Dr. Reid.

“Everybody meet Agent Prentiss.” He spoke, not even sparing her a glance as he flicked through the file in his hand. 

“Derek Morgan.” He heard him speak and could see out of the corner of his eye that they shook hands as Emily gave response back in an awkward manner “Emily.. Prentiss.” She quickly remarked, giving him a smile that was filled with an abundance of nerves 

“We can make nice later.” Hotch interrupted once he realized Gideon had sat down and his words were clear enough to send JJ the message that he wanted to get started. A terrorist organization working on the U.S. soil wasn’t particularly something Hotch wanted to put off any longer. 

“The DEA managed to intercept a message..” he heard JJ’s voice and only then had he realized he had been watching Prentiss for the duration of the briefing, only being put out of his trance once he saw her move to take the note of JJ and being reading the contents  
“oh that’s not the transcript…” JJ started but Emily didn’t seem phased by the foreign language.

“No its in Arabic.. ‘our friends surprised us and eloped, we can no longer have the wedding as planned, we will deliver our gift at the next crescent.’” She finished and Hotch saw the blood rushed to her cheeks once she looked at and saw the entire team looking at her with shock on their faces. “I… I lived in several middle eastern countries.. Growing up..” she muttered, as if explaining why she was fluent in a different language. 

Gideon then fired questions at her, asking what it meant and how the lunar cycle had anything to do with the terrorist attacks, she explaining Muslims commonly use a lunar calendar and Reid helped by explaining the next full moon would be upon them in 48 hours. Prentiss had surprised Hotch – as well as the entire team in the briefing, maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all. Hotch thought to himself as he watched Prentiss leave the room close to JJ, it appears as though the two had already befriended each other.

“And you were worried.” Morgan commented, patting Hotch on the back as he too watched the two female agents walk along side each other down the hallway before sending a reassuring smile his way and took off to go and find Garcia. 

\- 

“I think you should take Prentiss with you to Guantanamo.” Hotch started as Jason left his office

“Excuse me?” He questioned

“She could be of help.” Hotch replied, keeping his ground

“I don’t know enough about her abilities.”

“Well neither do I but we have to find out sooner or later.”

“It’s an interrogation, not a training exercise.” Gideon deadpanned

“She is the only member of the team fluent in Arabic.” Hotch tried to rationalize 

“There are other translators.”

“Yeah but they haven’t studied behavior.” 

“Does she even have a go bag ready yet?”

“My guess is there isn’t much this women is un prepared for.” Hotch felt a feint smile cross his lips as both he and Gideon glanced over to Prentiss’ desk where she was awkwardly holding a duffle bag, avoiding eye contact with the two Agents.   
Gideon sighed, giving up his fight as he walked down the stairs, own duffle bag in hand. “Car leaves in 4 minutes.” He stated bluntly as he rushed past Prentiss’ desk. 

“Yes sir.” Prentiss couldn’t help the smile that overtook her features and she glanced at Hotch, nodding in a thank you in his direction with a soft smile covering her lips and Hotch couldn’t help but smile back, giving a nod as if to say “don’t disappoint me” before he walked back into his office and watched as Prentiss rushed towards the elevator before giving up and taking the stairs in attempt to make the 4 minute mark Gideon had set and it took everything Hotch had in him to not laugh at her dedication as he shook his head, he noticed that he couldn’t fight the smile that was glued to his lips even if he tried.


	4. Chess Games and Interrogation Strategies

Chapter 4.

Reid was extremely focused on the chess game at hand, feeling slightly guilty for ignoring the newest member of the team but the desire to beat Gideon at this game overpowered the guilt. He would buy her a coffee later for his lack of hospitality, he thought to himself. 

“Sir, I just wanted to say thank y-“ Prentiss had started 

“Do not thank me. I am not doing this for you.” Gideon interrupted and Reid looked up cautiously, watching as Emily’s face went from confusing back blank and emotionless. 

“Right, of course, sorry sir.” Her voice lacked any sort of emotion and Reid felt the overwhelming need to go and give her a hug. 

The three of them briefly spoke about the case at hand, Gideon assigning them to their positions and keys to look out for while he interrogated the suspect, until finally; “Game over.” Came Gideon’s comment and he buckled up, Reid was confused at first before he felt the plane sharply make a 180 turn, the chess pieces scattering all over the floor of the jet and once the plane had a stable straight line of flight again, Reid sighed

“Aw man, I was winning!” he complained

“Actually he would’ve had you in three.” He heard Prentiss comment, he looked at her with his brows furrowed before glancing at Jason and seeing the smug look on his face and Reid used his eidetic memory to remember the last places on the chess board and tried to figure out how that could have been up until the plane landed at Guantanamo Bay.

-

 

From: Aaron Hotchner   
To: Jason Gideon   
How is Prentiss going?

From: Jason Gideon   
To: Aaron Hotchner  
Fine.

From: Aaron Hotchner   
To: Jason Gideon   
Are you giving her a chance to help?

From: Jason Gideon   
To: Aaron Hotchner  
Yes.

From: Aaron Hotchner   
To: Spencer Reid  
Reid, is Gideon allowing Prentiss to help? 

From: Spencer Reid   
To: Aaron Hotchner  
Yeaaa!! She’s actually doing really well.. Knew exactly what part of Egypt he was from and knew when he was quoting the Hadith rather than the Qur’an, Gideon is impressed but of course he wont show it :)

From: Aaron Hotchner  
To: Spencer Reid  
Good. Keep me posted if anything changes. 

Spencer Reid looked up from his text and glanced at the newest member of the team, smiling slightly as he saw Prentiss on the phone with Garcia, attempting to find some truth in their suspects story about a bomb killing his family. She was determined and clever, Reid was well aware of that and knew her particular skills would come in handy in their team, however, Reid knew how difficult Hotch and Gideon can be to win over and therefore he silently hoped that Prentiss had enough of a backbone to take their cold sides until they warmed up to her. JJ needed a friend after Elle and Reid knew Morgan needed another partner. However, Reid didn’t feel as though he needed to have hope, he saw the fire in her eyes, he saw the respect she held for her superiors even when they didn’t deserve it and Reid had a sense that Agent Emily Prentiss was going to fight to win her bosses over and even if she didn’t manage that, Reid could tell she wouldn’t just give it up. He didn’t even realize he had been smiling at her until Prentiss had gotten off the phone and made a joke about him taking a photograph as it ‘lasts longer.’ Reid just chuckled at her and both of them put their headsets back on as they began to analyze the conversation between Gideon and their suspect once more. 

Between Gideon’s prolific knowledge on the human mind, Reid’s intellect and Prentiss’ ability to translate body language and Arabic terms, the 3 of them together as a team managed to figure out the terrorist plan of attack and therefore allowing the other members of the team back at Quantico and the DEA to stop the gas attack on the newly opened mall. Emily couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride wash throughout her body – her first case as an FBI profiler and she helped saved hundreds, possibly thousands of lives along with the help of her team. Packing up her bag, she couldn’t stop the small smile from ghosting over her lips, humming to herself. She did feel a slight disappointment when she heard Gideon praise Reid briefly for his help and didn’t comment to her but she let it slide. 

Reid, however, wasn’t understanding as to why the newest member of the BAU had received such ice cold personalities from the two leaders of the unit, and therefore as a result of that, he caught up to Gideon as he was climbing on the jet, Prentiss not far behind as she was removing her bag from the SUV. 

“Gideon. You need to give Prentiss a chance..” Reid tried to reason with him, Gideon was one of the most influential people in Reid’s life, yet he couldn’t understand why it took so long for him to warm up to people. 

“I did give her a chance, what do you think I was doing for the last 48 hours?” 

“No, I mean a real chance, not just about her skills but try to get to know her. Don’t be so harsh on her, please.” Reid looked at Gideon, eyes wide with a sense of plea through them and Gideon sighed and turning his back on Reid, terminating the conversation as he saw Prentiss walking up the stairs of the jet, not far out of ear shot of the two agents. 

After about 21 moves, Gideon had already checked mated Reid on their first game of chess and Reid sighed, overly dramatically so to the point that Prentiss even glanced up from her book to see what all the fuss was about, being smirking slightly and glancing back down at the page and resumed her reading. 

“That’s it. I give up I just give up. You know what, I’m going to take a nap.” Reid muttered, exasperatedly as he squeezed out of the seat and to the long lounge, where he lay down and began to find a comfortable spot that wouldn’t do much damage to his neck during his nap.

“Prentiss.” Gideon’s voice filled the silent plane and the Emily’s head shot up

“Sir?”

“Do you play?” Gideon asked, watching her closely and Reid felt a smile creeping onto his face

“Yes sir.. I play.” And even with his eye’s closed, Reid could hear the smile in Emily’s voice and slowly enough, Emily felt even the slightest bit of acceptance at the same time that Reid felt sleep overtake his entire body.


	5. Political Agenda

Chapter 5.

Hotch sat in his office chair, his desk separating Congresswomen and himself and for one of the first times, he had been thankful for his oak wood design as it was the only thing stopping him from doing something that would almost indefinitely make him lose his badge and gun. 

The current case at hand was a D.C. serial killer murdering sex workers, a case typically one the BAU is assigned to resolve and catch the killer before they turn rouge and start a blood bath. Commonly, in profiling, the way they catch killers like this is by limiting their victim pool and alerting women who work the streets by notifying the media. And yet, before him sat Congresswomen giving him the ultimatum that him and his team either stayed on the case and in doing so would be forced to stay quiet and not notify the media and on the contrasting side, if they did not comply with these rules then the BAU would be swiftly removed from resolving a case that not only was a profiling specialty, but one that was occurring on the same soil of the BAU headquarters. It was safe to say Hotch began to feel his blood boil, and just to put the cherry on top of the cake, as the Congresswomen was leaving, she turned around and looked directly at Hotch. 

“Oh, and one more thing, Agent Hotchner. You’re driven, you’re intelligent. You have all the qualities of someone who is very capable of running the Bureau one day, so it’s probably best to accept now that the head position of the FBI has as much to do with politics as it does with law enforcement. Good day.” 

Hotch felt as though he had to go to the gym and box out his anger in attempt to diminish the very high chance of him breaking something. Hotch glanced out of his blinds and watched Congresswomen walk down the stairs right to… Agent Prentiss’ desk. To his shock, Hotch watched as Prentiss jumped up, her face lighting up as the two seemed to have a friendly chat. If Aaron’s anger wasn’t already sky rocketing through the roof, then it sure as hell was now. Hotch had always been the calm member of the unit. The other males somehow struggling to keep their hats on, Hotch however managed to control his expression and only let his anger out in mandatory work out sessions or interrogations if need be, yet Hotch could not even begin to explain the anger that ran throughout every bone in his body and even a slight bit of betrayal. He had been right to think that Agent Prentiss had been put on this team as a political stunt and the only problem was he had no proof but the visual of a conversation he couldn’t hear and his gut feeling and that certainly would not be enough to have Agent Prentiss removed from the BAU. 

-

The team were gathered in the conference room all of them working together in a brainstorming session to come up with a linguistic profile for the unsub that wasn’t currently in federal custody. Hotch did have to admit, the profile did point to the current detained 15 year old boy that Reid had an encounter with, but Hotch knew he and his team had to consider all possibilities. He had heard the teams suggestions but nothing was sinking into his brain, it was as if their words flew in through one ears and directly out the other, the only thing Hotch could thing about was the Congresswomen and she could be working with - 

“I know we’re spitting balling here but this profile is a lot like Nathan Harris…” Prentiss. 

“I don’t want to talk about Nathan Harris.” Hotch shut her down immediately, in no mood what so ever to put up with her possible political agenda and Hotch felt a slight bit of annoyance as Morgan backed her up.

Eventually, the team realized they were just running around in circles and the best bet for them now would be to go and get some rest and come back fresh in the morning and eventually, the team packed up and left – but not before Hotch snapped at JJ and demanded that she keeps this story out of the morning paper. Hotch was so exhausted he couldn’t even try to feel guilt for the small look that crossed JJ’s face when she received his reaction. 

-

To Hotch and the team’s dismay, their morning was greeted by the news of yet another body. Hotch, Prentiss, Morgan and Reid traveled to the dump site together, Prentiss feeling a sense of overwhelming regret as she saw the victim as being one of the girls she had spoken to yesterday and Emily was almost certain she felt her breakfast coming back up once she noticed the girl was only 16 years old – rather than the 19 she had told her yesterday. 

“This unsub is only getting started, he’s escalating and his anger is coming more into play. This is only the beginning and if we don’t put a stop to this guy soon then there is going to be many more body’s landing on our door step.” Morgan commented as he walked around trying to profile the dump site.

“And in exactly 2 days congresswomen is going to stand infront of the capital and declare D.C. as crime free.” Hotch could feel the annoyance starting to bubble up again, he tried to hold it down but that was until Prentiss turned to him

“Hey what did she want with you the other day, anyway?” and Hotch had to fight everything in his body to not discuss with her the unlikely future she had on this team in that instant, instead he opted for a stern answer that made it clear to her that she was out of line. 

“That was a private conversation.” His dark eyes boring into her, watching as her expression shifted as quickly as light

“Right, of course, I’m sorry.” She mustered out, looking back at the crime scene in attempt to wear off Hotch’s gaze yet she could feel his death glare on him for the remainder of their time at the crime scene. 

-

“Prentiss. A word.” Hotch demanded as the 4 Agent’s made it back to the BAU and into the bullpen. He didn’t stop walking as he took the route up the stairs to his office, Emily hot in his heels as he opened the door for her. “Take a seat.” He commented, shutting the door behind her and walking to the back of his desk, watching her reaction very carefully as he begun to say what he needed to.

“I don’t appreciate being questioned in front of other Agents.”

“That was not my intention, I’m sorry.”

“What were you talking to Congresswomen about the other day?” Hotch kept his expression harsh and eyes stern as he watched for any tell signs as he interrogated the newest Agent

“She stopped by to say hello, she worked with my mother so I’ve known her since I was a kid.” Prentiss explained.. a very rational explanation, Hotch thought to himself but it didn’t rid the begging question.

“Did you tip her off about this case?”

“No.” Prentiss’ voice was no longer the calm one she held before, this tone had more strength in it and he noticed her body language changed also.

“This team can’t function if I don’t trust everyone on it.” He began to explain

“Sir, if I touched a nerve out there today then I’m sorry but I don’t deserve this..” Prentiss defended herself

“You mysteriously showed up at the BAU after one of my team members was involved in a questionable shooting.” He began and he saw Prentiss purse her lips together as she shook her head slightly, her eyes rolling 

“Right.” She whispered, her voice weak but full of spite 

“You have done good work, I’m not questioning that. But I will not put up with a political agenda.” He explained, his profiling skills coming into play as he watched her shoulders slump, her lips quiver and her eyes dart around the room before she finally settled onto him again, her eyes dull and body too relaxed that it seemed forced. 

“My mother is a career politician.. You worked with her. Did you like her?” She spat, staring at him with as much of a dark look as he gave her before

“She is an impressive women.” He chose his words very carefully, knowing the ice was thin.

“Well.” She scoffed “I think politics makes people distrustful. I think it makes them hate themselves, I think it tears families apart and damages people.” Hotch just knew words couldn’t come out that raw without having some personal experience. He was about to apologies before; “So if there is nothing else, then I would like to get back out on the streets and find out who is killing these women.” She stood up, eyes dead as she watched him. “Sir.” She spat the last part, venom dripping from her tone as she left his office but not before she slammed the door for good measures.


	6. Coffee, Books and Files

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter was just a bit of a filler, I just had to start giving their relationship some guidelines before it gets into the real thing.

Chapter 6.

To say the tension between Agent Prentiss and Agent Hotchner within the following weeks had been noticeable would be the understatement of the year. Whilst Hotch made small but true attempts to try and make amends with the new Agent, Emily didn’t seem to want to take any of it. She was polite but restrictingly so due to the sole fact that he was her superior. The short replies and change in body language whenever either of them spoke was too obvious to go un-noticed in a room full of profilers. Yet, nobody mentioned it. 

Gideon didn’t seem phased at all, Reid was too scared to bring it up, Morgan had tried to cheer Prentiss up many times by bringing her coffee on multiple occasions and JJ tried to be on equal sides, reassuring Prentiss she was welcome in the team as well as not changing her attitude towards Hotch either. Both Hotch and Prentiss were mature enough to know they could not let their inability to see eye to eye effect their work and their working environment, but when possible, the two avoided each other like the plague at all costs and due to the assignments of positions in cases being done by Hotch, the two were very rarely forced to interact. They both agreed that was best for the unity of the team, as it has been proved when 2 members fight; the entire team starts to crack. 

In the early months of Prentiss’ employment, Hotch watched closely, noticing as the days passed, the stronger the friendships Emily managed to build with the other members of his team. Yet, despite her constantly pristine work ethic, her bilingual skills giving more assets to the team than they had before, Hotch always found himself watching for any aspect of her work that could show a double meaning behind her commitment to the BAU. And yet, he could not come up with one thing. After the prostitute murdering case, Emily had put her head down and worked harder than he thought she would. Now he may not know Emily Prentiss very well but he was almost certain that weak did not fit her personality, however, he wasn’t aware she would be this determined to keep her position here at the BAU. Someone with her skills and contacts had a high chance of landing a position further up in the rankings than she currently sat at. 

Opening the door to the bullpen, the first thing Hotch heard was an “Ah! Shit.” And a softer constant flow of curse words as low and behold, there stood Emily Prentiss, by the coffee machine with a dark stain spreading through her yellow shirt as she shook her reddening hand in the air in attempt to wear off the burn from the hot water. Hotch began to immediately step forward and offer assistance as she started blotting away the mess that had been made on the bench before;

“Morning Emily, have a good weekend.” Hotch heard the happy tone of Derek Morgan, Morgan breezed right past Hotch, holding a cup of coffee in his own hands as he gave the new Agent a sly smirk, Emily looked up at where the voice had come from before she smiled, laughing in a slight embarrassment before answering. 

“Yeah.. No.. Yes.” She sounded as confused as a puppy trying to understand a new trick 

“Oh I’ve been there.” Was Morgan seriously flirting with Prentiss? Hotch thought to himself. Did he not know the rules about fraternization between fellow bureau employees?

“No it wasn’t.. ahh I don’t want to get into it.” Emily weakly laughed and Morgan still had that same smirk plastered on his face as he nodded, stirring his own fresh couple of coffee

“No problem.” His smirk got large, if that was even possible.

“It just feels weird for me to discuss my personal life here.. I mean I don’t really know you guys all that well yet.” Prentiss tried to explain 

“I totally get that.” Morgan nodded, understanding before he turned to walk away and Hotch was about to as well before he heard Emily speak up again and this is the exact moment when Hotch – and apparently Morgan’s – interest peaked.

“I think I totally screwed up this date.” She blurted out, Morgan turning on the balls of his feet and that damn smirk reappearing on his face, a chuckle leaving his mouth as he shrugged and an embarrassed laugh left Prentiss’ mouth, returning the shrug, looking at Morgan with questioning eyes.

“Okay, what happen?”

“You have to understand, I’m a nerd.” Prentiss deadpanned “Like seriously!! And I can fool people, for days… weeks even! But sooner or later I blow my cover and I just say something.. so geeky, and then he doesn’t respond and I lose all confidence.”

“What did you say?” 

Prentiss sighed, bracing herself for the coming snickers as she replied “Kilgore Trout.” 

But the snickers never came, instead Morgan shrugged, “Guy has a problem with Kurt Vonnegut?” 

“YOU KNOW KILGORE TROUT?!” Hotch tried to ignore the strained feeling in his stomach as he saw Prentiss’ eyes light up like a Christmas Tree.

“I read slaughterhouse 5 when I was 12 and it blew my mind. Seriously I couldn’t get enough so I just kept going and I read ‘em all.” Morgan ended, smiling. 

“Yeah, yeah, me too! What’s your favourite?!”

“Oh, Mother Night!”

“The one about the American Spy!” Prentiss offered, enthusiastically 

“Who pretends to be a Nazi” Morgan nodded, following. 

“’You are who you pretend to be.’” Prentiss started quoting “’So be careful who you pretend to be.’” Morgan ended, eyes locked with Emily’s as they both smiled at each other 

“Oh my god, I can’t believe you’re a Vonnegut fan! You just made my day.” She beamed 

“Anytime.” Morgan smiled back at her, eyes crinkling as their glasses clinked together and it was at that moment that Hotch made his presence known.

“Conference room in 5.” He declared, watching Prentiss closely before glancing at Morgan and resuming his attention back to Prentiss before he walked away. 

-

Between a possibly racially motivated killer, Reid’s current state of PTSD, Gideon and himself butting heads with the lead detective and the mayor and Prentiss’ being on the team was enough to make Hotch feel as though he was drowning. He felt more exhausted than usual and left the case at hand to be under the authority of Gideon. Hotch kept a close watch on Prentiss – which of course she noticed. 

Whenever their eyes met – which was more frequent than not, Hotch would either stiffen his expression and stare back at her with dark eyes or nod slightly, either times she just glanced away before slightly scoffing under her breath as she got back to whatever task was currently at hand. 

They closed the case successfully and managed to save the life of a young girl in the process and whilst Hotch should feel proud and relieved, all her felt was weak and lethargic. Maybe that was the reason Hotch was so slow in getting on the jet, being the last member of the team – the doors sealing up behind him.

He looked around, Morgan had claimed the lounge as he splayed out, scrolling through his phone, Gideon had claimed the single chair as he messed around with a couple of photographs, Reid and JJ had opted to choose the 4 seater to sleep on, each taking 2 chairs and Prentiss sat in front of a table, back of her chair against the back of JJ’s chairs she was resting on, and in front of her was a vacant seat. The only vacant seat. 

Just sit down, pull out the files and don’t say anything. She’s reading she probably wont even look up. Hotch gave himself a slight pep talk, aware that if he were to say something, it would either be too rude or too unprofessional. Sighing, Hotch dropped his briefcase next to the chair, the impact causing Prentiss to glance up, the two’s eyes connected for a moment.

“Sir.” She greeted, her voice as enthusiastic as someone who had a hangover and had been working for 13 hour straight and she glanced right back down at her book. 

Hotch made his way to the back of the cabin, immediately pulling out a glass and filling it with the scotch they kept on board before walking back down, smiling slightly as his eyes caught Morgan’s and placed his drink on the table. He noticed Prentiss’ eyes move slightly to see what it was before moving them once again back down to her book. “Did you want one?” Hotch questioned, watching as her eyes stopped roaming her page, she glanced up at him and pursed her lips for a moment.

“No, thank you. Sir.” The last word seemed to come as an afterthought before she folded the top right hand corner of the page she was reading, placing her book in her go bag before taking out her paperwork. 

“You don’t have to do that now. The report wont be due for another 7 days.” Hotch mentioned, glancing up from his own paper work 

“I’m well aware of due dates, Agent Hotchner.” Prentiss bluntly replied, not looking up from her files and Hotch felt a heat of anger wave wash through him again. 

“Is there a problem, Agent Prentiss?” Her voice holding a slight more amount of force than he would usual use and out of the corner of his eye, he could see Gideon spare a glance at the two of them before deeming them irrelevant and focusing back on his task. 

“I don’t know, is there?” She replied, not missing a beat. Eyebrows raised in a questioning manner 

“I’m not sure I follow.” 

“You have been profiling me since the day I got onto this team, Hotch. Every move I make is scrutinized, and aside from all of that – you still genuinely believe my placement on this team has some crap thing to do with politics.” She spat the last word, “Have any of the other team members received this treatment from you when they joined?” She asked, her voice a bit quieter and his silence was all she needed for an answer before she rolled her eyes “Of course.” She shook her head, tongue pushing between her two front teeth as she closed the file and watched out the window as they began their decent into Washington and Hotch noticed her blink a couple of times as her eyes got glassier.


	7. Profiles, Revelations and Decisions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hotch goes head to head with Strauss in attempt to prove his capability at his job and Prentiss gets a revelation she never saw coming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this chapter! sorry for the delay, I'm overseas at the moment and it was hard to find time to write.

Any case where a team member was targeted or personally involved was always extremely difficult, but Hotch couldn’t begin to put into words the emotions he felt overtake his body after him and his team dealt with Frank – the most prolific and horrifying offender the team have caught and lost to date. And now, instead of going home and ignoring his sever marital problems by drowning himself in a bottle of Scotch, he was stood in the last possible place he wanted to be, glancing out the window instead of facing the Unit Director Erin Strauss, yet listening to every word she had to say. 

“The future of the BAU is not in the balance here..” Strauss started and Hotch had to physically stop himself from rolling his eyes and instead, he grit his jaw and turned to face her, his eyes dead and his expression blank. “The residual impact as the result of the investigations of the crimes and the criminals you pursue is… Every cause has it’s effect.” Strauss ended and Hotch didn’t even try to hide his scoff at that.

“You think I don’t know that.” He bit back yet she stood her ground

“I believe you are no longer effective in your post.” She deadpanned, her eyes dark with determination as a wicked smirk ever so slightly ghosted her lips as she watched him. Hotch felt every sense in his body yelling at him to fight back, so that’s what he did. That is exactly what he did, but first he needed something personal, something that would hit close to home, and once he saw the framed photographs of her family, he felt his own sense of smugness overtake him before he used the skills his job had taught him, caught her in a deadlock gaze as he profiled her. 

“The modern furniture, the strategically placed magazine, the framed diplomas, the art on the wall are all in conflict with your family photos.” He stated, a slight bit of detatched humor lacing his tone. “You have three children but you favour the middle one, your son, “ “WHAT do you think your doing.” She interjected but Hotch stood tall and firm and continued without missing a beat, acting as though she hadn’t even spoken. “Of course you love all of your children but not like your son..” he continued, not allowing her a space to interfere as he saw the fire light up her eyes. “That is enough.” She demanded, her posture stiff and her hands clenched and Hotch knew he was treading on thin ice yet he couldn’t seem to stop.

“The Bonsai,” he gestured to the small tree sat peacefully atop her desk “You obsessive nurture to compensate for feelings of failure as a mother.” And there it was, the nerve he hit. He knew that as soon as she abruptly shot up from her seat and glaring at him. “AGENT HOTCHNER! I said that is enough.” She demanded “My position is not in question here. As your superior I am questioning your ability to lead your team.” She hissed, her eyes swimming with an evil he wasn’t aware she possessed, yet he didn’t let his phase him as Hotch raised his eyebrows slightly and looked down upon her. 

“My team – let me tell you about my team.  
Agent Morgan fought to protect his identity against the very people who could save him, why? Because trust has to be earned and there are very few people he truly trusts.  
Reid’s intellect is a shield which protects him from his emotions and right now that shield is under repair.” Mentally, he paused as he came to Prentiss yet he still let his words flow smoothly,   
“Prentiss overcompensates because she doesn’t feel as though she is apart of the team, she needn’t worry.” He stated truthfully, as he confirmed to himself that she had received his trust.   
“Every day Agent Jareau field’s dozen’s of request for our team, and every night she goes home, hoping she had made the right choices.  
Garcia fills her office with figurines and colour, to remind herself to smile as the horror fields her screens..” his heart broke slightly as he knew how hard Garcia’s job truly was for her.  
“And Agent Gideon.. In many ways is damned by his profound knowledge of others. Which is why he shares so little of himself but he pours his heart into every case we handle.” Hotch finished and he felt a slight proudness wash through him as he saw the confusion that had flickered through Strauss’ face as she became aware of things she had not known about the field agents of the BAU, when Hotch realized she was at a loss for words, he continued, in a much more defeated manner.

“I stand by my actions, and I stand by my team and if you think you can find.. someone better for the job then good luck.” Hotch shrugged as he closed his eyes briefly before turning swiftly and starting to walk out of her office. But before he could make it to the door, she called for him again.

“Agent Hotchner.” She attempted to hold a strong front, but once Hotch had turned and saw her expression, as she watched her family photos carefully he understood and offered, “How do I know you favour your son?” Her expression was all the confirmation he needed and he sighed gently “I’m good at my job.” And with that, he escaped from her office and breathed in deeply as he savored the feeling of the air being inhaled into his lungs. 

-

“Agent Prentiss, a word when you have a moment please.” Strauss called out from the balcony overlooking the bullpen and the newest Agent’s head shot up and watched her cautiously, looking like a deer in headlights.

“Yes, Ma’am..” She agreed, her eyebrows furrowed in confusion and she and Morgan shared a confused glance, the entirety of the BAU weren’t unaware of the heated conversation Hotch and her had had moments prior which was most likely the reason behind the nervous feelings that had replaced Prentiss’ appetite. 

“Well this can’t be good…” Reid muttered a half hour later as he stood by Morgan who had handed him a cup of coffee as the two men watched Prentiss walk carefully up the stairs to Strauss’ ‘dragon cell’ as Garcia had fittingly called it. Morgan even saw Hotch watch Prentiss with a curious gaze through his blinds which affirmed to him that even he was unaware of what Strauss had wanted with the newest member of the team. 

Once Emily had been locked inside her office for over 10 minutes, the two Agent’s looked at each other with a helpless glance and Morgan sighed “She will probably tell us what it was about in the morning..” before shaking his wrist to be able to see the face of his watch “C’mon kid, it’s late, wanna grab a bite to eat? We deserve it after the case we had.” 

“Will you drive me home after?” Reid grinned widely and Morgan chuckled 

“Of course pretty boy,” before patting his back as he guided the two of them to the elevator and Morgan regretted his decision almost instantaneously as Reid started telling Morgan about his “current favourite book” which was named “the magical mathematical equations of quantum physics.”

-

Emily felt herself shaking with nerves as she sat in the office chair across from what she was well aware to be a.. unliked, member of the BAU. 

“Ma’am, forgive me but I’m not sure what this is for.. I have a lot of work to finish up.” Prentiss commented, her eyebrows furrowing as she watched Strauss take a sip of her water, her eyes watching Prentiss with greed and Emily was fairly sure she had never felt so small in her life, yet she too stood her ground with her, her shoulder’s poised, fingers laced together atop the table and eyes razor sharp as she returned the piercing gaze, and even if she had prior warning, Emily couldn’t prepare herself for the words that were about to come out of Strauss’ mouth.

“I put you in the BAU, I knew how badly you wanted. Everyone did. You weren’t exactly shy about letting us know. But there were those who didn’t feel as though assigning you to the BAU was a good idea, they thought you were too reckless, I believed in you, however. It’s time to pay back the faith I had. Your team is in trouble, they have lost sight of the big picture and I believe they are reckless and at times out of control, it is time for Agent Hotchner’s career to come to an end and if you want to stay in the BAU, Agent Prentiss. Then you’re going to help me make that happen.” Strauss finished and Prentiss felt a wave of emotions all at once and she was frozen in place by shock. 

She broke their gaze and flickered her eyes around her office and out of the corner of her eye, she watched Strauss smile, and Emily was sure she was taking her silence as agreement and yet Emily wanted nothing to do with this what so ever, she was fighting to keep the content’s of her stomach up. “Ma’am, I have a lot of work to attend to, if you don’t mind..” She stood up, thanking her legs for keeping her weight as she tried to get out of her office as fast as she could. “I’ll be in touch.” She heard Strauss call as she managed to leave her office and escape down the balcony of the bullpen. Emily couldn’t help but feel the salt water tears begin to leak down her face, unable to hold them in before she was locked in the safety of the bathroom and Prentiss was so focused on getting to the small bit of privacy that she missed the shocked glance she received from Hotch as he caught the distraught expression on her face through his blinds as she briskly passed his office.

Locking herself in a cubicle, Emily couldn’t hold back the inevitable and she felt her body make itself to her knees as she leant over the toilet bowl and empty the contents of her stomach in a viscous manner as the tears freely flowed down her face. Hotch had been right to think she was a mole, she was – yet not in the way he had thought. He thought she was there with the intention of willingly sharing information, yet she was forced to be for the bitter reason to try and end his career. Emily was sure if there was anything else left in her stomach, she would have vomited that up also. She shakily got to her feet as she sat on the closed toilet bowl as she put her head in her hands and took deep breaths, trying to collect her thoughts. “Fucking politics” she muttered as she wiped the water that still leaked from her eyes. She couldn’t do this, she knew she couldn’t. She couldn’t ruin the function of the team and she certainly couldn’t ruin Hotch’s career. After a few moments of sitting in silence with her own thoughts, she realized the time and the thought of sleeping in the cubicle seemed to be the height of unappealing. 

Unlocking the cubicle, she laughed lightly in a distressed manner as the mirror showed her appearance. She looked like absolute shit and that was putting it lightly. Her eyes were puffy and red, her black eyeliner was graciously smudged around her eyes and her mascara had clumped together. “Lovely” she sarcastically remarked and she was just thankful that no one would be still at the office at such a later hour besides possibly a few members who Prentiss didn’t know and therefore didn’t care about. With a deep breath in and a quick wipe under her eyes, she sniffed in and raised her eyebrows to make herself look presentable before making a beeline for her desk, not wanting to risk getting caught in the slim possibility that Strauss was still there and would catch her, Emily grabbed her bag and jogged to the slowly closing elevator.

“HOLD THE ELEVATOR.” Hotch heard a distressed voice call and immediately he shot his hand out between the closing door and the build in safety mechanism jolted in mid close and they reopened just intime for one distressed member of the BAU to jump into the silver cart and that one member happened to be Emily Prentiss. 

“Thanks,” she sniffed as she ruffled through her bag and Hotch noticed she hadn’t noticed him yet, her focus solely on finding whatever it was she was looking for, and Hotch watched her closely, his head tilting to one side as he noticed the unmistakable tear tracks that had dried on her soft red cheeks. His brows furrowed as his earlier suspicions were confirmed when he saw her rush past his office. When she hadn’t gotten a response, Prentiss glanced up and once she made eye contact with him, her eyes widened and her mouth feel opened slightly. 

“Oh.” She stated weakly, the two watching each other with an abundance of emotions. 

“Are you okay?” Hotch asked cautiously as he took in her appearance. Her hair devilish from her constant running of fingers through it, her swollen and red eyes, her puffy lips and the reoccurring sniffing of her nose – all signs of post crying. 

“I’m fine.” She affirmed before glancing upto the level indicator. Since when was this elevator ride so slow? She though to herself and began to fiddle with anything an everything, invisible lint on her work pants, the strap on her bag, tapping her nails together. Hotch frowned slightly as he looked at her with a curious glance, knowing it wasn’t his place to pry but his worrying became more intense as he noticed her start to nibble on her nail. A nervous tick of her he had noted after the 4th case she worked. 

“Oh god finally.” He heard her breath out a sigh of relief once the elevator hit the ground and Emily squeezed her way through the partially open door, fleeing the elevator as if it was on fire and Hotch didn’t know why but he felt himself jog after her.

“Prentiss wait.” He called out and he saw her stop in her tracks, cautiously turning around and looking at him with wide eyes. 

“I… It’s not my business but I hope everything is okay..” he started carefully “Do you need to take some time?” He questioned, watching her and making a point to remember every expression that she unwillingly revealed through her eyes. 

“I don’t.” she stated bluntly and before Hotch could argue, she swiftly turned on her feet and as fast as Hotch could blink, she was in her car and revving the engine before speeding away. 

But, what Hotch couldn’t stop himself from wondering was whether she was speeding away from the situation or if she was speeding away from him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hotchniss starts to really come in now I had to create a baseline for the story first


	8. Cases lead to Suspension

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emily feels guilt and Hotch gets suspended

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this is shorter than my other chapters but it was a bit of a filler :) Enjoy anyhow! x
> 
> Any comments, concerns, advice or questions can be left in the comment section!

Chapter 8.

The following weeks, Hotch made a point to watch Prentiss’ actions closely. Yet, this time he wasn’t doing it for the purpose to end her career at the BAU, he was doing it out of care for his team member. He noticed the way she shifted uncomfortably when Strauss made a presence, or whenever she and he made eye contacted, her vision shifted almost immediately but not before he was able to see the flash of guilt behind her eyes and a case past, Hotch noticed the way she made more of a point to stay further from him than usual, occupying a seat on the jet next to JJ or Morgan, or if Hotch were to strike up a conversation, she would never speak and only act as though she was busy with other things whilst the other team members replied to him and that was when Hotch knew something had bothered the younger agent so much so that she resulted to blatantly ignoring her superior. 

The current case at hand was the horrid murder of brunette young college students and immediately the team boarded the jet to get to the University before any other innocent women fell victim to the sociopath. 

Once the jet was about to land, Hotch started rattling off directions for his team members.   
“Reid, you and JJ go and speak to the college girls, Morgan Gideon and I will go and speak to the campus security and the dean and Prentiss?” he watched as her head shot up at the speed of lightening, her eyes watching him widely and silently begging for something he didn’t know what “would you go to the M.E?” he didn’t know why he asked rather than simply telling her what she was to do but thankfully she nodded “Of course” before glancing back down at the case file and Hotch let it go as he buckled his seatbelt as they felt the plane begin to descend. 

\- 

Through the rough morning they had with another body landing on their doorstep, Hotch didn’t have as much time as he would like to profile Prentiss’ behavior to try and find out what has been bothering her so much, instead his time was used by trying to create a situation for the campus to be evacuated in attempt to save more innocent lives. And whilst Hotch was focused on his work and listening to Morgan’s ideas, he felt his mind become more situated on the task at hand and less on his newest agent. 

“Hi, Dr. Rowlings? Agent Emily Prentiss we spoke on the phone.” Prentiss shook the doctor’s hand as he gestured for her to come into the sterile room. Prentiss hated this part of her job, profiling a dead body in hopes it will tell them something more. Emily had to press her lips together to avoid her emotions from rising to the surface as she looked down at the lives who were taken too quickly before shaking her head and it was as if she had flicked a switch and Emily was gone and it was now SSA Prentiss there to do a job. 

“The victims have no defensive wounds, she didn’t even raise her hands to fight him off.” She commented factually as she glanced at the paled arm of the second victim. “Did you finish the toxicology report?” She asked, glancing at the doctor who stood to one side to let her do her job before nodding “Yes, none of them had any alcohol or drugs in their systems, they were all, fit young and healthy girls.” His voice held an element of sadness to it and Prentiss nodded slowly. “Right.. thank you for your time.” She offered a hand to him once she had concluded she received enough information from the M.E. before seeing herself out. 

Making a beeline for her car, eager to get to the college to hopefully help with the investigation by sharing the information she gathered with her team mates before she heard the unmistakable vibration of her cell phone rattling off in her purse and as she made a disgusted face, she shoved some items around until her hand gripped the buzzing device and she answered the call without sparing a glance to the caller ID

“Prentiss.”

“Good Morning Emily.” Emily felt her blood run cold as she heard Strauss voice “I’m just checking in.” She continued and Emily sighed exasperatedly 

“Checking in?” she clarified with annoyance 

“About your case? The college girls?” She spoke as if it was the simplest thing in the world and Emily furrowed her brow 

“Uh, we don’t know that much yet Ma’am.” 

“But you will let me know if there is something to report?” Strauss hinted and Emily felt the same sick feeling she does when she see’s Strauss give her that dirty look and Emily pursed her lips as she closed her eyes, thankful the women on the other line couldn’t see her.

“I really have to get back to work.” Prentiss’ reply was short 

“Of course, you know where to reach me.” Strauss seemed unaffected and Emily shook her head as she hung up the phone, the unmistakable feeling of guilt tumbled around her stomach as she tried to keep her focus on the case at hand and not at how to get out of this messy situated she had managed to burry herself into. 

-

The case ended in the worst possible way, with 3 more victims, blood on Morgan and Prentiss’ hands, Gideon being so scarred that he left without saying a word and Hotch’s career on the line. Hotch couldn’t help but think that the only way this could end worse than it did was if a member of the team was the one who had taken the knife and he shuddered at the thought of losing a member of his second family. 

“Agent Hotchner. A word. Now.” He heard Strauss snap and he watched Prentiss’ expression as her eyes widened and looked at him closely before looking at Strauss and looking down again and Hotch couldn’t overanalyze the situation anymore before he made his way up into her office and braced himself for the coming storm. 

“I have been on the phone with the flag staff Arizona Police.” Strauss started after she dramatically slammed her pen down on the table and Hotch just raised a brow and waited for her to continue “Did you actually allow a disturbed young college student to meet with a man you believed to be a serial killer?” She ended the question in a disbelieved tone and Hotch briefly licked his lips to keep his level as he answered 

“We didn’t know who, but we knew a meeting would take place.” He replied truthfully 

“WE?” She caught on, and Hotch backtracked 

“I, Ma’am. It was my decision.” He cleared, protecting his team. 

“And now that student is dead.” She spat the last word

“She committed suicide, yes. After killing the unsub.” Hotch agreed

“How could you let this happen?” Strauss demanded an explanation

“It was not the outcome we had hoped for.” 

“’It was not the outcome you had hoped for’” Strauss repeated disbelievingly “That is your answer for me?” She stared at him.

“Yes Ma’am.” And Hotch knew the worst was coming as he saw the look in her eyes.

“Give me your badge.” She said sternly and Hotch slightly tiled his head as he watched her 

“Ma’am..” 

“You’re suspended for two weeks without pay, pending an investigation of your conduct.” And Hotch felt himself robotically reaching into his blazer pocket and pulling out his credentials and regretfully placing them on the desk in front of her. “And Agent Hotchner, if it was solely upto me. You wouldn’t be getting these credentials back.” She snarled, venom dripping from her tone and Hotch nodded once before raising his brows quickly 

“Always a pleasure.” He stated sarcastically, removing himself from the office and relying on autopilot to get himself home where he allowed every emotion he denied himself to feel overcome him.


	9. Closer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prentiss and Hotch go to help the team and in doing so, an unspoken closer relationship form between the two.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took me so long and I apologise, I'm not very happy with this chapter.

“You’re doing the right thing.” Haley supported as she rubbed his shoulders whilst their son sat across from them at the dining table, messily eating his oats and more of it seemed to land on the table than in his mouth. 

“I know..” Hotch tried to sound like he believed himself as he sat over the abundance of paperwork he had to fill out to finalize his transfer. Maybe he could have a desk job at the FBI.. That wouldn’t be so bad. He thought to himself and ignored the inner turmoil when he thought about the reality of that. 

“Hey..” Haley pulled him out of his train of thought and he turned his head slightly “Getting suspended was a blessing in disguise, we deserve a normal life.” She ended happily as they both glanced to their son and Aaron tried to force out the words ‘I love you’ but for some reason, he couldn’t seem to voice them and instead just gave a simple kiss to her hand resting on his shoulder. 

-

Despite the many cases and meeting’s Hotch has dealt with in his career, he doesn’t think he has ever felt such a drowning weight of stress on his shoulders as he stood in the elevator waiting to go upto the 6th floor. Hotch wasn’t even aware he was out of the elevator until he heard Morgan’s familiar voice approach him. 

“My man am I glad to see you! Trust me when I say, things have been a little shaky around here.” He bantered lightly with a smile and Hotch nodded in the direction of his GoBags 

“Where’re you headed?”

“Milwaukee, it seems like an ugly one. C’mon, I”ll catch you up on the flight.” Morgan nodded his head in the general direction of the airstrip and Hotch sighed

“I’m having a meeting with the section director.”

“Okay so I’ll wait.” Morgan replied stubbornly 

“I’m putting in for a transfer” Hotch admitted with what couldn’t be a happy tone no matter what way you looked at it and Morgan scoffed 

“Is that a joke?”

“Strauss already suspended me, the writing is on the wall.” Hotch tried to explain

“Hotch, we both know that suspension was bullshit!” Morgan replied, trying to speak some sense into him

“You’ll get a new unit chief” Hotch shrugged 

“What if we don’t want a new unit chief?!” Morgan pressed and Hotch could see his emotions were getting the better of him and therefore decided to result to light hearted joking to avoid his own emotions coming to the surface 

“Maybe the next one wont be such a drill sargon.” He commented with a feint smile, using the terminology he heard Morgan oversay to Elle Greenaway when she first joined the team and Morgan sighed

“Look, are you a pain in my ass? Yes sir. But wanting to hang out with you and needing you to lead this team are two very different things.” He replied, not giving up his fight and before Hotch allowed his vulnerability rise, he fled the situation. 

“It’s been a pleasure.” He spoke truthfully as he grabbed Morgan’s hand and shook it before taking off into the bullpen without giving Morgan a moment to response

 

How was it Hotch frequently found himself in a one on one conversation with the women he hated most in the FBI? He wasn’t sure. Yet, here he was once again, standing across from the section chief as she read over his transfer papers with a smug smile ghosting on her lips. 

“I was hoping you would make the right decision.” She smiled too sweetly at him and Hotch didn’t even bother replying “Have you thought about what department you will request?” She ended and Hotch furrowed his brow confused 

“I thought if I stepped down on my own terms I would have my choice of departments..” 

“Well I’ll consider it after I finish my investigation.” She shrugged and Hotch knew then and there he wouldn’t get his choice of new jobs if it were the last thing Erin Strauss did. “You were a prosecutor..” here we fucking go. Hotch thought to himself as she continued “How about a white collar crime task force? It would get you home at a reasonable hour…” She spoke and Hotch had to hide his scoff at that last comment, as if Strauss was suggesting this for him and his family’s sake. Hotch was about to reply before.. 

“I’m sorry to interrupt sir.” And Hotch spun his head to the door and there stood Emily Prentiss and out of the corner of his eye, he saw a disbelieving look cross Strauss’ face and he begun to wonder but his thoughts didn’t get very far before Prentiss started talking again. 

“Sir I have decided to resign from the FBI, Effective immediately.” She stood with her shoulders tall and eyes sharp and alert and Hotch couldn’t help but notice the shift in the air between her and Erin Strauss as Prentiss had hardly spared the women even so much as a glance

“I don’t understand?” Was all Hotch could bring himself to say and Emily smiled a tight close lipped smile and nodded slowly, as if expecting this reaction.

“I’m taking the foreign service exam and with my connections, I have a good chance of landing in the state department.”

Emily Prentiss working a desk job? Hotch had to fight off the sarcastic laugh that was coming up. He could see the fire in her eyes right now, she wasn’t cut out for a desk job and they both knew that and when Hotch saw the look in her eyes, he begun to wonder the real reason for her decision. 

“Prentiss I think that is a mistake…” he tried to rationalize with her but she smiled slightly 

“Well…. Don’t try and talk me out of it, Garcia saw my name on the list and already tried, and if she cant talk someone out of doing something then no one can.” She smiled as she attempted to end on a light note before turning slowly. 

“OH and Sir! It’s good to see you back.” She smiled softly as she faced back towards him “The team needs you.” She ended and that was when he saw Strauss’ gaze flicker away briefly and her posture stiffen and Hotch frowned in Strauss’ direction but not before hearing the ever so slightly smug tone of Prentiss. “Ma’am” it seemed bitter and almost careful but before Hotch could read into it anymore, Prentiss had already turned and left his office and Hotch watched as she turned and walked away. 

-

Hotch sat in his living room couch, the Milwaukee case file spread across the oak wood design in front of him and his laptop out as he tapped into the search engine various times and dates as he heard footsteps coming down the stairs behind him and once he turned to face his head, he was met with the disbelieving look of his wife.

“Jack still napping?” he asked nonchalantly and he saw a dark fire light up Haley’s eyes 

“I thought this was over.” She snapped and he sighed 

“It is.. I’m just curious.” He explained before the house phone rung again and he abruptly answered it “Hello?” he greeted and he saw Haley immediately shift the case files upside down so the horrors they contained couldn’t be viewable “HELLO?” He stiffly asked again before hanging up with a growl, he couldn’t take this anymore and he felt the distinct feeling of determination run through his veins as his search results came up on his webpage. 

“What did the section chief say?” Haley demanded and Hotch spared her a glance 

“She suggested a white collar crime task force.” He could hear the distaste in his tone and Haley pursed her lips 

“Would you have to travel?” She inquired 

“No, I would have a 9 to 5 life.” Hotch felt his stomach roll at the thought 

“Then it’s a no brainer.” She hissed, grabbing her bag off the counter and walking out the door.

-

“Morgan I cant I already put in for a transfer..” Hotch tried to explain to his begging team member over the phone, ignoring every instinct in his body telling him to get his ass on the jet and over to his team. 

“No you didn’t. At least not yet anyway, it’s not in the system Hotch I checked, neither is Emily’s. Please man, we need you.” Morgan’s voice broke ever so slightly and the thought of JJ, Reid and Morgan sitting in another state, desperately racing against the clock to save a women was too much for Hotch’s blood and without any hesitation, he started packing his go bags. 

3 shirts, 2 pants, 2 ties, 2 blazers, undergarments, toiletries, shoes. The bare essentials was all he would need for a day or so and he knew the peace and quite would be disturbed as he was unlocking his gun safe as he heard his wife’s footstep come up the stairs. 

“What are you doing?!” She screeched 

“Keep your voice down.” He shot back 

“Where are you going? You quit!” 

“I cant just switch off my loyalty Haley. “

“They suspended you for two weeks?! Who the hell are you being loyal too?” 

“My team. My team need me.”

“No, they need Gideon.” And Hotch stopped her with a dark look, as if some how saying Gideon was better than him and Haley stopped in her tracks 

“I need you here.” She tried again, 

“And I will be, as soon as this case is over.” He gripped his duffle bag in hand as he walked out the door, not bothering to say goodbye to her. 

“Yeah well don’t forget to give your son a kiss goodbye.” She spat bitterly and Hotch couldn’t bring himself to care anymore, not after he pulled up Prentiss’ file on his phone and found her address, his car coming to life as he hit the gas and drove the unfamiliar route to her house. 

-

The first day off Emily Prentiss had had in years and it was probably the longest day of her life. She had cleaned the house, vaccumed, done her grocery shopping, gone for a run, vaccumed again and by that time it was 12.35pm. She was going crazy already. 

Sighing, she pulled herself off her couch and made her way to her fridge to make herself some lunch, “Salmon.. Salmon sounds nice.” She muttered to herself, her voice drained out by her Bon Iver CD on loop in the background. She finally felt a little less restless before there was a knock at the door and she furrowed her brow, she hadn’t been expecting anyone and the only friends she really had currently in D.C were the members of the BAU and she knew they were out on a case, so it was safe to say Emily felt cautious as she approached her door and nothing could prepare her for the shock she felt when she saw who was on the other side. 

Glancing through the peephole, she scoffed slightly and shook her head once as she saw Aaron Hotchner standing patiently on the other side and yet her mind opened the door faster than the speed of light and for a split moment, the two stood there staring at each other, searching for something Emily wasn’t even sure what. 

“Can I come in?” Hotch broke the momentary silence and Emily stood aside gesturing for him to make his way inside and he instinctively profiled the place. The modern art, the few but beautiful paintings and the major view of the capital. Hotch was sure his bank account would cry at the cost of her loft and yet he didn’t mention it. 

“The team needs us. They are in Milwaukee and Gideon didn’t show and don’t tell me you quit and I put in for a transfer.” Hotch started and Prentiss couldn’t hide her judgmental surprise 

“You put in for a transfer?” She repeated, watching him with raised brows and her eyes not sparing him any thought as to how she was truly thinking. 

“They’re both still hung up in the system so technically we’re in dereliction of duty by not being there.” His persuasion attempt wasn’t working and he saw that as she shook her head and pressed her tongue behind her upper row of teeth

“I’m sorry I cant go.” She stated firmly, shoving her hands into her pockets and Hotch nodded once, looking down as he tried to avoid the strange feeling of rejection that was occurring in his stomach,

“Right. Sorry I barged in.” He made a move to leave her apartment before she stopped him 

“Wait! Can I ask, why are you really here?” She looked at him cautiously and Hotch could tell she was profiling him. 

“I told you.” He weakly attempted and Emily rolled her eyes as she shook her head, deeply sighing before she looked at him as if to say she wasn’t buying it and Hotch knew then it was now or never to find out if his suspicions were right. 

“I think Strauss came to you and asked for dirt on me.” He tread carefully and Emily furrowed her brow 

“Why would she do that?” She held her strong front

“I think if you have your eye on top leadership of the FBI, you’d want to know who might stand in your way.” Hotch volunteered and he watched as a brief flicker of affirmation shine through Prentiss’ eyes but it was gone as quickly as it came as she took a step towards him

“And.. what could I have told her?” She shrugged, her gaze never leaving his and Hotch knew then all cards had to be placed on the table.

“That one of my agent’s might have murdered a suspect in cold blood, or another might have a serious drug problem that I didn’t report and if Strauss had any evidence my career would be over, and to your credit, you quit. Rather than whisper in her ear.” He ended the last part softly, his tone attempting to show how truly thankful he was and Prentiss’ silence was the affirmation he needed, but just to set it in stone, she started nodding slowly as their gazes stayed locked together 

“I told you, I hate politics.” She stated and Hotch took the shot

“Come to Milwaukee.” He tried and he saw as she shook her head before quickly continuing “One more case. I’ll make you a deal, if your ready bag isn’t here, packed. I wont bug you anymore but if it is I want you on that plane with me. One more case…” he repeated and he saw her front begin to crack as she gave in to him slowly 

“I already turned in my badge and my gun.” She shrugged and Hotch didn’t miss a beat 

“That’s just hardware.” He tried to fight off the smile that came once he saw her nodding slowly 

“Okay well.. at least, let me get.. ready.” She shifted awkwardly on the spot as she looked around her apartment, her gaze stopping briefly on the couch before settling on the bar stools and pointing to them. “You can sit there.” She ordered before turning and jogging up the stairs, taking two at a time and Hotch dialed the familiar number of their technical analyst 

“Sir.” Came her happy voice 

“Garcia, tell the airstrip polite to be on stand by, Prentiss and I will be there momentarily.” 

“Yes sir.” Hotch could hear the smile in her tone and the line went dead. 

No more than 10 minutes later did Emily come bounding down the stairs, her duffle bag in hand and Hotch had to quickly avert his gaze elsewhere once her saw her attire. She had on a light pink shirt that was slightly opaque and v-necked which allowed Hotch a clear visual of the the upper swell of her breasts, she covered her legs in black cargo’s and her familiar black work boots locked over her feet. 

“I.. I have a blazer in my bag.” Prentiss explained cautiously as she became aware of Hotch watching her, his eyes glancing over her outfit and he shook his head, as if to get him out of the trance. 

“No. No, no, no, that’s fine. We should go. Jet is on standby.” Hotch avoiding her gaze at all costs and Emily just shrugged 

“Ahh.. don’t move.” She requested and Hotch turned around to find her fiddling with her alarm by her door before the familiar sound of the alarm activation filled the air and the two of them left the apartment, Hotch somehow ended up carrying her bag for her and opening her passenger door but that was all just a gentlemanly thing to do, of course. 

-

The short trip on the jet was mostly filled with work talk, neither of them feeling necessary to mention any personal things although Emily couldn’t help but wonder where his wedding ring had gone off too as she noticed Hotch playing with the now bare 4th finger of his left hand. Prentiss and Hotch started forming a linguistic profile together, both contributing valid points before the pilot announced they would be landing in 10 minutes and if the two would fasten their seatbelts in preparation for their descent. 

Being alone on the jet with Prentiss made Hotch notice a few more things. The way she would tug slightly on her pendant that sat permanently around her neck with a small smile on her lips when she got a comment of praise on her work, or the way she would pull her hair away from her face and neck and roll it up into a make shift bun out of frustration when she didn’t understand something, or the way she would tap her fingers together when she felt awkward in a situation, or even the way she would lick her lips before she spoke. And right now, after the announcement of the plane’s decent, Hotch noticed the way she buckled her seatbelt too tightly and the way she would grip the arm rest with a little more force than usual and Hotch furrowed his brow as he noticed her tightly shut her eyes as she inhaled deeply.

“I didn’t realize you were a bad flyer..” he commented carefully as he buckled his own seatbelt and her eyes shot open, looking fearful for a moment.

“I’m not..” She huffed in a child like manner and all Hotch had to do was shift his gaze to the tight grip she held on the arm rest and she sighed “Look, once the plane is in the air, I’m fine.. but take off and landing.. it’s just.. I don’t.. I don’t know.” She started shifting her pendant from side to side in a rushed manner 

“I understand. It’s okay.” And Emily looked at him with a soft gaze and as the plane noticeably went down and Prentiss’ eyes shut tighter, he shifted his gaze out the window to try and avoid the circulating feeling that was seeping into his bones.

-

“Prentiss.” Hotch quickly caught her arm and Emily stopped before getting into their awaiting SUV, looking at Hotch curiously as she waited for him to continue.   
“I didn’t get a chance to thank you, for what you did for me and our team. You ended your career to save mine and that’s just… thank you.” Prentiss felt herself smile at the word our and she just nodded and smiled gently at him 

“Of course Hotch.” 

-

“Are they expecting us?” Prentiss turned back to face Hotch as the two of them walked together into the precinct where their team mates were secured by a glass room. 

“Unless Garcia told Morgan or you told JJ, no.” He replied and Emily felt herself smile as they walked into the room and saw Reid’s face light up 

“Look who’s here!” He beamed 

“Hey, where do we start?” She grinned as she saw Morgan and Hotch shake hands whilst she dumped her bag graciously at the spare seat across from JJ. 

 

“How fast can you get us upto speed?” She said as she flicked her hair out of her face

“How fast can you sit down?” Came JJ’s response and Emily and JJ laughed gently to each other as they sat down together, Emily felt exactly in her element as she gripped the case file, turning it around before opening it infront of her and scanning the contents in side. 

For a moment, everything felt exactly right and just how it should be. The immediate shift in the other 3’s demeanors signaled that they felt the same but of course that moment was cut short when Strauss entered the room, her ice cold gaze pinned on Prentiss before looking towards Hotch and somehow, her eyes got darker and Hotch stopped doing what he was occupying himself with and stared right back at her. No one spoke and the room got so silent you could hear a pin drop. 

Emily didn’t know what came over her, but seeing the look Strauss was giving Hotch made her bones light up with a dangerous determination “We’re only here to help.” She spoke sternly, knowing through his gaze that Hotch silently thanked her.

“We’ll deal with this later.” Strauss promised and Emily just raised one brow at JJ before deeming her as irrelevant and got to work. 

-

The team managed to successfully grab onto a solid lead of a father and young son, the father being diagnosed with a terminal illness, which gave him 6 weeks to live. All signs in the profile pointed to the father and it was enough of a cause for the entire team and Strauss to turn up at the house and brainstorming a plan to get the women held hostage and the boy out as safe as possible. 

Hotch, Morgan, Reid and JJ made their moves around the house, Hotch successfully grabbing a line of vision on the boy alone in the family room, occupied by the cartoon on screen. 

“The boy is alone in the family room.” Hotch informed Prentiss as she stepped out of the car, Strauss beside her.

“Where are your other Agent’s?” Strauss questioned before Morgan intercepted and explained Reid and JJ were out back incase the father tried to make a run for it. 

“Any sign of the nurse or the dad?” Prentiss asked, her eyes furrowed as the sun glared into her chocolate orbs and Morgan informed her they hadn’t been spotted.

“Okay, call in SWAT and secure the perimeter.” Strauss declared and Morgan stared at her 

“He’s holding a women inside!” Morgan huffed out 

“We don’t know that for certain. We don’t have probable cause!” Strauss explained and Hotch looked down as he knew Strauss was correct

“He’s right.” Hotch muttered before he spared a glance to the brunette beside him, her head tilted slightly with her lips parted – a clear sign she was thinking.  
“I wanna go in alone..” She stated before flicking her vision to Hotch as if to explain “The boy is in the family room, he’ll open the door.” 

“No.” Strauss bitterly snapped and Hotch tilted his head as a way to subside the snarl that was threatening to rip out of his chest at the way Strauss spoke to his Agent. 

“We need to get inside that door. He’s looking for female authority figures, if he let’s me in I can signal as soon as I see anything that gives us cause.” Prentiss explained, her vision focusing back on Hotch as she finished 

“Technically you’re not even in the FBI.” Strauss reminded her with a sour tone and Hotch narrowed his eyes at his superior. 

“All the better.” Hotch snapped back at Strauss as he went into their shared SVU to grab a alert device. 

“She’s interfering with a federal investigation!” Strauss exclaimed and Hotch was thankful for the concealment the van provided as she couldn’t see him roll his eyes as he blatantly ignored her. 

“Well if I’m no longer in the FBI then you have no authority over me. I’m just a civilian knocking on a little boy’s door.” Prentiss stood up for herself and Hotch felt a proud smile emerge on his face 

Hotch moved back next to her and Morgan and he watched as she placed Morgan’s second weapon behind the waistband of her jeans and concealing it with her shirt. 

“As soon as you have probable cause, give us the signal and get out of there.” Hotch demanded as he handed her the device and she nodded as she clipped it on the side of her jeans and Hotch watched as her eyes met his for the briefest of moments before she took off in the direction of the front door of the suspects house. 

“No one knows better than me that we have to make this arrest legal.” Hotch explained gruffly to Strauss as his vision was glued to his newest Agent walking into what he was sure would be a dangerous situation, unprotected and all he could do was sigh wait for her signal to protect the rest of his team. He knew if he ordered an ambush, the rest of his team would suffer for it. 

It took approximately 34 seconds after Prentiss was concealed inside the house before Hotch felt restless and began to pace. 

“Let’s get ready to move in.” He ordered, throwing his blazer off and into the SVU as he placed on the Kevlar, moving up to the front door, gun raised and ready to infiltrate the second he received Prentiss’ signal. 

Hotch felt a uneasy feeling surge through his stomach and he closed his eyes as he took a deep breath in, willing for Prentiss to give them the signal so he could go in and get her out of there. “MOVE!” he heard himself demand as he heard the unmistakable buzz of the alarm in his ear piece, without a second of hesitation, he smashed down the front door, Morgan coming through the opposite side of the house as they raided the house, moving through like snakes to where they heard the commotion going on in the other room. 

Hotch allowed himself the shortest moment to look at Prentiss, she was lying on the ground, a deep graze to her head and her face twisted in agony, his vision flicked down to the wooden slab that had no doubted caused her injury and he felt an immediate rush of anger through his veins before he pointed his gun at the small boy who shakily held Prentiss’ firearm in his hands, staring back at Hotch with wide eyes. 

“Hand me the weapon son. Give me the gun.” He demanded, holding out one hand in direction of the death weapon and after receiving approval from his father, the small boy gave him the weapon and immediately his father instincts overtook him as he scooped the young boy up into his arms and carried him out of the room, he gave himself a moment to look at Prentiss who was being cared for by JJ as he passed her, giving her a sympathetic look which she didn’t quite catch before he left the room. 

It was about 20 minutes later when Hotch found himself standing next to Prentiss’ ambulance, where a paramedic was tending to the wound on her head. He stood out of her eye sight for about 15 seconds, just watching her before he moved into her line of vision.   
“How’s your head?” He inquired and he saw her move her eyes to meet his,   
“I’ll live.” She shrugged before her brow furrowed slightly “Is it weird I’m glad to be back?” She asked him, seemingly worried and he pondered for a moment, not answering her question directly   
“I’ll make sure it stays official.” He promised her, watching her nod at him in thanks before he walked away. 

After a brief discussion with Strauss and Morgan, Hotch knew his loyalty lied with the BAU. His passion was his job and even if it was draining, he couldn’t see himself doing anything else. 

The jet ride seemed too long, his vision stayed mostly on Prentiss who was curled up on the couch, sleeping peacefully with a bandage over her now-clean cut. He stared at her and as he was doing so, he felt someone else’s vision on him. Turning to his right, he saw Morgan watching him with raised brows. 

“What?” He pressed and Morgan didn’t say anything, instead he just tilted his head in Prentiss’ direction and shrugging suggestively. 

“I am just concerned about her. She took a large blow to the head, incase you forgot.” He snapped too harshly and Morgan just furrowed his brows at him, his eyes displaying that he didn’t believe him.  
“Uh huh.” He scoffed sarcastically, “I don’t blame you. She’s pretty.” He shrugged and Hotch’s vision bore into him and all Morgan could think was ‘if looks could kill’ but he didn’t let it phase him and Morgan slipped his headphones on as he looked out the window, unaware of how much of a baffled state he left his unit chief in. 

Hotch walked through his front door, the house too quiet to be occupied by his wife and son. The lights were off, the kitchen was clean and there were no toys splayed out on the living room floor. She had finally come to her breaking point. Hotch thought to himself as he walked up the stairs, seeing a large amount of his wife’s clothes removed from her closet as well as 2 overnight bags. No note, no text, no call. Nothing. Just an empty house. Hotch couldn’t bring himself to act surprised, instead all he could do was feel worry for his son and for his newest Agent. 

From: Aaron Hotchner   
To: Hayley Brooks   
I am coming by to see Jack tomorrow after work. 

Hotch sent the text without bothering to ask about her or her well being, his only desire to see his son and reassure to him that he was his father and he loved him very much.

From: Aaron Hotchner   
To: Emily Prentiss  
You have been reinstated to the BAU. However, due to your head injury you are not required to come into work tomorrow if you do not feel up to it. Get some rest, and once again, thank you. 

From: Emily Prentiss  
To: Aaron Hotchner   
Thank you for the lift home and thank you for helping with my reinstatement. I feel fine and I will see you tomorrow, Goodnight Hotch. 

From: Aaron Hotchner   
To: Emily Prentiss  
Goodnight Prentiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please give me feedback and let me know what you think! It helps to know where to go with the story


	10. Coffee, Codine and Beer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Closer(?)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It took me so long to get this chapter up and I'm still not happy with it, I apologise. I have such a clear vision of where I want this story to go and it will get better so please just bare with me!

As per usual, Hotch was awake at 6.30am, yet today he was dressed and ready to leave his house. His empty house, his subconscious dauntingly reminded him to which he ignored.  
He walked around the bare space 3 times before seeing the time had only increased by 4 minutes.  
‘Maybe she would already be awake.’ Hotch thought to himself. With that, he grabbed his keys and briefcase, ensuring his gun and badge were on him before he went to the garage and followed the route he took only 24 hours earlier. 

It was 6.49am by the time Hotch had stopped at Starbucks, ordering a long back for himself and a macchiato for her. He had overheard her say her order to JJ one time. 

‘I don’t blame you, she is pretty.’ That had to have been the 4th time he had recalled Morgan’s words as he got into his car once more, this time with 2 coffees in his hands. 

The clock had only just turned 7am when he had parked his car outside of her apartment block, ignoring the feeling in his stomach that was telling him this was so bad on so many levels. He held the two coffees in his hands, attempting to stop them shaking as he walked directly passed the elevator and up the 5 flights of stairs, knowing taking the longer route would give him more time to think.

Not enough time, apparently as he stood at her door only moments later, he physically let out a laugh at how pathetic he was being as he took a deep breath, brought a fist to the door and knocked 3 times. 

Emily had woken up at 6.45, the banging of her head reminding her what had happened yesterday, the pain making her want to stay in bed and disregard all of her commitments, but it also made her fully aware of the promise she made to Hotch – that she would be in to work today. And with that, she pulled herself up off the bed, shuffling her tired body into the bathroom in preparation to make herself presentable for what she was sure was going to be a long day. 

She had managed to find a fitted red tank top that still covered most of her chest – not really, but it was more appropriate than the other shirts she opted to choose from – and tight, black work pants. She ran her fingers through her slightly waved hair, letting them fall to rest on her shoulders before she turned around, sparing a glance to her bum in the mirror before making the walk down the stairs and to the kitchen where she prepared herself breakfast.  
It was on her second mouthful of granola when she dropped the paper and furrowed her brows in confusion when she heard a hesitant knock at her door. It was only just past 7am so she knew it wouldn’t be anyone bringing her mail. As she chewed on her mouthful slowly, she walked towards the door.  
She felt herself choke slightly as she glanced through the peephole and saw her boss standing on the other side, patiently. Forcing herself to swallow she opened the door and immediately their eyes connected.  
“Good Morning, Prentiss.” Hotch spoke smoothly, although she did note the way his eyes briefly roamed down her body as he took in her outfit, his gaze focusing a second longer on her chest than anywhere else before he met her vision again. Nothing about his expression gave any indication as to what he was thinking.  
“Good Morning Sir,” She stated slowly but stood aside and guestered for him to walk in. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were coming by?” She ended the statement as a question, watching as Hotch walked around her kitchen island and stood directly in front of her position where she was eating before.  
“I apologize for the lack of calling, I just wasn’t too convinced you would be able to drive to work with your head in it’s current condition and thought I would swing by a pick you up on the way.” Hotch spoke slowly, each word being delivered carefully and she had to hand it to him – he was right. She was considering getting a taxi to work due to not wanting to bother JJ.  
“Oh, thank you. Uhm, ok well let me just.. grab my stuff.” She stated, immediately feeling her blood rush faster through her body as she glanced around her apartment, making a mental checklist of things to do as she started to move to throw out her breakfast before Hotch caught her. “Prentiss, sit. Relax, eat your breakfast. I don’t mind waiting.” He said and it was then that she noticed the coffee’s that sat on the table, which she raised a questioning brow to and saw a feint smile form on his mouth sheepishly.  
“I figured this was better than what we had at the BAU. Macchiato, am I right?” He said as he handed her her own cup to which she smiled, impressed. “Correct.” She grinned, taking the cup from him and covering it with her hands, taking a sip and sighing in delight as the caffeine pumped through her.  
“Would you like some granola?” She offered after a moment of thought, taking her own spoonful and munching on it as she watched him carefully and he shook his head. “No, thank you. I’m fine with my oatmeal I had at my house.” He smiled to which she just shrugged and continued to munch happily on her breakfast. 

“Prentiss..” It was Hotch’s slow drawl of her name that made Emily’s head shoot up, her eyes wide as she slowly chewed on her mouthful, watching him carefully and he tilted his head to one side as he tried to form his words together. “Thank you. For what you did for me, I know I already said this yesterday but I really do mean it. Also, I wanted to just apologize for my actions to when you first came onto this team. I apologize for judging you and treating you lesser than everybody else. It wont happen again and I truly am sorry. I don’t want you to take this the wrong way.. But I’m very thankful you didn’t leave the team. You are a wonderful assest and an important member of our family. Please don’t forget that.” He stated, his eyes glued to hers the entire time and she felt her heart melt once he said family. She couldn’t bring herself to form words, all she could do was nod quickly, her eyes softening as she smiled at him.  
“Well hey,” She spoke after a moment “As a team, we go through thick and thin together, but we always have each other’s backs.” She shrugged before she looked down again, her smiling growing larger as she poked around at her remaining granola. 

Once there was only milk and a couple of remaining granola flakes in her bowl, she jumped off the bar stool, startling Hotch as she did so as he glanced up from her newspaper abruptly, and straightening up. “I’ll grab my bags and be right back, then we can go.” She stated with a cheeriness behind her tone as she bounced up the stairs and Hotch took it upon himself to help her clean up as he gathered her almost empty bowl and disposable coffee cup, putting everything in its place before he wiped down her kitchen counter and sat atop her stool as he tried to wait patiently for her. Yet, not long after, he gave into his urges and wondered around her downstairs and sort through what she owned, trying to find out more about her. 

Emily ran upstairs and tried to find her nicest – yet simpliest – perfume she owned, she rarely bothered with perfume, normally she would just using a casual body spray to freshen her up when she went to work. However, ‘normally’ she wouldn’t be in a car, alone, with her boss, for over 40 minutes. She settled with a slightly spiced scent, spritzing it on her pulse points, her wrists and over her chest and she felt herself panic at the thought of Hotch being downstairs. Pull yourself together, Prentiss. It’s your boss. Her subconscious hissed at her as she wondered to the bathroom to apply her make up and brush her teeth. However, when she looked in the mirror, she felt an uncalled for emotion of self-consciousness as she looked back at her reflection and the only thing that came to mind was ‘Hotch saw me like this’. A thought she didn’t like at all. 

After applying mascara, eyeliner, concealer and blush to make her appear more awake, her fingertips moved between a nude lip and a slightly darker rose colour. She sighed as she contemplated over the decision for a moment, her brain telling her to go with the nude she wore constantly but her gut telling her to wear the rose shade. With shaky fingers, she grabbed the deep colour and moved the lipstick around her lips, the deep red shade making her skin appear fairer and milkier and she didn’t have a problem with it. As she stared back at herself, she tilted her head and glanced over her features and with a slight nod in personal encouragement, she gripped her bag and walked out of the confinements of her bathroom, walking past her room and going downstairs to meet her boss. 

“Hotch?” Prentiss called out when she was halfway down her flight of stairs and saw the empty kitchen. “Here!!” She heard his voice call out and immediately he popped his head around the staircase and she breathed a sigh of relief she didn’t know she had in her.  
“Thanks for going through my stuff.” She deadpanned with a light tone, Hotch did, however, spare a glance to make sure she wasn’t upset before returning her look with a light smile as he walked away from her music stand and towards her, gesturing to the realm of vinyl’s she had. “Impressive music choice, I must say.” He commented, moving down and taking her bag from her as he ignored her protests.  
“We should get going.” He stated as they made their way to the front of her apartment and he took the time to watch her as she switched off the light, activating the alarm and closing the door behind her and just as he saw her head begin to move to face his, he tore his eyes away from her and forced them to look elsewhere.  
“Ready?” She grinned and he stopped and glanced at her for a moment “If you are.” He replied and they walked down the stairs together and into his awaiting black sedan. 

-

Emily tried hard not to feel nervous at the quizzical looks that came from their team members as Hotch and Emily walked into the bullpen together, Hotch carrying her go bag. 

Once Hotch left her bag aside her desk, she sat down in the chair and immediately buried herself in work, shutting down any window for Morgan, Reid or JJ to ask any questions. The silence was suffocating until Reid finally broke it.  
“Good Morning Emily, how are you feeling? How’s your head?” He pressed gently and with a hesitant glance, she looked up and saw his warm but slightly awkward smile and she relaxed. “Oh I feel much better, a bit sore still but I have some codine tablets on me if it gets too much.” She knew she was rambling and she also knew Morgan would’ve picked up on it but thankfully, he let her be. 

JJ smiled softly at her and walked sheepishly over to her desk and placed a hand on her shoulder, gesturing for her to turn around. When she did, she was met with all 3 of their awkward but soft smiles and she furrowed her brows and tilted her head in confusion. 

“We heard what you did for us.” Morgan stated, his voice firm but warm and she saw Reid flush slightly when she glanced at him before he nodded quickly.  
“We wanted to say thank you. So, thank you.” JJ’s small smile turned into a full blown grin. “Risking your job to save this team is just.. thank you, Emily.” JJ continued and Morgan stood up from his chair and took the small walk to her desk and perched his bum to the only place where there wasn’t any clutter and placed a hand on her shoulder. “Seriously, Princess. What you did, for people you hardly know, thanks.” He grinned a wolfish smile at her and she just let out a breathy laugh as she felt embarrassment creep up on her at all the attention. “Like I said to Hotch,” She pretended not to notice the look shared between Morgan and JJ when she mentioned his name “It’s not a big deal. We’re a team, we stick together. I’m just happy I didn’t do more damage than good.” She laughed awkwardly. 

-

The day passed by rather quickly, which stunned her. She made a few too many trips to the coffee machine throughout the day but surprisingly only had to pop one of her pills to ease the tension that became overbearing in her head.

Just happened to be her luck that the time she went to the kitchenette in the bullpen to take the tablet, it was the same time Hotch had decided to come and grab himself a coffee and heat up what appeared to be a bowl of soup.  
At first, he didn’t say anything. Merely giving her a slight tip of his head in acknowledgement and she was fine with that. However, she could feel his gaze intently set on her as she fiddled with the foil packaging in attempt to remove the pill from its confinements. “Everything alright?” He asked, his voice low but cautious and she quickly swallowed the pill with the help of a mouthful of water before she quickly nodded her head. “Just a bit sore.” She admitted and then wished she hadn’t when Hotch turned and gave her his full attention, his dark eyes set on her. “Do you need to see a medic? Or I can get someone to drive you home?” He rushed out, his eyes scanned the bullpen in attempt to find someone to be her chauffer. “No, I’m okay. Hotch honestly.” Without a rational thought, she reached up and placed her hands over his biceps. Hotch immediately froze under her touch and his gaze flicked down to her hands before they moved back to her face. His expression blank, giving nothing away. Hers, on the other hand. Her eyes widened momentarily before she dropped her hands to her sides and she quickly turned on the balls of her feet, muttering a quick apology as she did.  
She breathed out a breath she didn’t know she had been holding when she sat down onto her chair again after she all but ran away from him. She didn’t even have to look up to feel Morgan’s gaze on her and it took everything in her to not give him the finger once she heard his smug laugh softly fill the awkward air when Hotch moved through his door into his office. “I hate you.” She muttered out, loud enough for Morgan to hear and all it did was prompt a louder large to emerge from him. 

When it came 7pm, Emily was finally beginning to pack her work up, unable to keep her mind focused any longer. She leant back as far as the chair would allow and stretch out her limbs, sighing in contentment at the relaxing feeling that washed through her. “Prentiss.” She heard his voice and immediately she shot into an upright position, her eyes flying open in shock as she looked up at her boss who was watching her with a blank expression. “Hotch.” She squeaked out before she shook her head “I’m sorry I was just..” She trialed off and furrowed her brows, “Stretching.” Hotch said with a slight smirk “It’s not a crime.” She looked at him with narrow eyes. So now he decides to make a joke. “Yeah. I guess not.” She laughed awkwardly and had to fight off the desire to fan her face. “Home time? I’ll give you a lift.” He muttered and she nodded once and stood up, reaching down to grab her bag before Hotch beat her to it, taking it in his hand along side his brief case. Blatantly ignoring her protests as he started to walk towards the elevator. Emily sighed and scuffed her feet as she followed him. The sound of his phone sounded like a bomb going off in the silence of the elevator and Hotch reached into his blazer pocket to retreat the device. Emily watched in curiosity as his face contoured into a sour expression before a look of what she pin pointed as sadness crossed his features. “Is everything okay?” She asked hesitantly and his jaw clenched “Fine.” Came his cold, sharp response. His voice firm enough to silence her instantly. 

The silence between the two didn’t break until they were 10 minutes into their car ride and the tension could be cut with a knife.  
“Hayley left when we were in Milwaukee. She and Jack are staying with her sister until I find a place for my own.” His voice was so quiet she could only just hear it over the car engine.  
“She’s already started looking for a job.” His voice was dark, a harsh and bitter laugh coming from him as he shook his head and Emily watched as his grip tightened on the steering wheel until his knuckled turned white.  
“I’m so sorry, Hotch.” She replied quietly and she watched as his head jerked slightly, his vision shifting to her momentarily before focusing back on the road. Almost as though he forgot she was there. “I was meant to go and see him, tonight. But she just texted me saying he already fell asleep, even though I asked if she wouldn’t mind keeping him up until I was there.” His voice sounded nothing like the one she knew. This sounded weak and vulnerable. Emily didn’t even know how to response, knowing nothing she would say would fix the situation. 

It was 20 minutes later that he pulled up infront of her brownstone. The ride was filled with mindless small talk that he initiated and she assumed he was chatting to avoid talking about the painful situation he was in. She was about to thank him and bid him goodnight with some comforting words about despite having never met him, she is sure his son loves him. That was until her mind was pulled back to reality as he opened her door for her, her go-bag already in his grip. “Thank you” She muttered, hopping out of the car and watched with confusion as Hotch shut her door, locking the car behind him and walking her upto the door. “You don’t have to walk me up, you know?” She mumbled, somewhat awkwardly.  
“I know.” Was all his response was. She had assumed he would walk her to the door of her complex but again he diverted her thoughts as he followed her up the stairs to the door of her apartment.  
“Welcome to my humble abode.” She joked to ease the tension as she held the door open for him before moving to disarm the alarm. She thanked the fact that her back was to him as she inhaled sharply before turning around and looking at him. She managed to hold down a gasp, only just, at the look he held as well as the close proximity there was between the two. “Where should I place this?” He asked, his hand lifting up slightly to display his point but his eyes never left hers. “You can, um, just dump it anywhere. It’s fine.” She all but squirmed away from him and breathed out as she made her way into her kitchen. 

She watched with feint amusement as he placed her go-bag gently on the chair before he moved and stood awkwardly in her foyer and his eyes wandered around her apartment once more, much like they had this morning and she realized it had been too quiet for too long. “Beer?” She asked, hoping her voice came off casual and she watched as he slowly drew his eyes away from her view of the capital and looked at her. “Sure.” He shrugged and moved around the island to go and help in whatever way he could. “There is a lime in the fruit bowl, knives are in the top left hand draw.” She tilted her head in the direction as he pulled out two Corona’s and Hotch nodded once and moved to fulfill the unspoken task. He heard the pop of the caps and her footsteps as he slightly glanced over his shoulder to see her place the bottles next to where he was slicing the lime wedges. “I’m just going to go and get changed, the TV is pretty straight forward to figure out.” And Hotch then realized Emily had unspokenly told him to go and sit on the couch as the TV was directly across from the brown lounge. 

Hotch placed the two beers with the lime in the neck of the bottle onto her coffee counter and clicked on the TV. Whilst he was channel surfing, he relaxed back into her couch and sipped on his beer, pausing briefly on Seinfeld before his thoughts drifted to the women upstairs and wondered what she would be impressed with him watching which prompted him to continue flicking aimlessly through the channels.  
He heard her footsteps on the stairs and when she came into view, he realized he must of looked a little too relaxed as his legs were splayed out infront oh him, his beer resting on his thigh as he was slumped into the back of the couch before he shot up quickly and thanked the heavens that none of his beer spilt. She laughed lightly as she saw his movement and shook her head when she was walking to the couch. “Relax, Hotch. Stretch out, it’s fine.” She smirked slightly, taking her beer and moving to the edge of her couch and curled up into it. “I think Seinfeld is on.” She commented after sipping her beer and he looked at her with raised brows “What..” She asked after a moment and Hotch noticed the way her cheeks flushed a shade a pink. “Didn’t know you were a fan of Seinfeld” He shrugged and she didn’t say anything in reply as she fiddled with the bottle in her hands, looking down at her lap. 

Eventually, the two finished their beers in silence as their chosen TV show played in the background and Emily sighed as she jumped up, Hotch moving his gaze to her and watched with slightly wider eyes as she stretched out her body, leaning up towards the ceiling and arching her back. Hotch gulped as he watched the way her chest rose in her shirt before he forced his vision back to the TV screen. Emily bent down and gripped his empty beer bottle and the loose fitting shirt gave Hotch a much too good view of her chest and he felt himself gulp loudly and she quickly looked up. “Everything okay?” Her dark eyes peered into his and he nodded quickly and coughed once into his fist. “Another beer?” She asked as she stood up and Hotch let out a breath, his mind telling him that logically it was a bad idea but his body had another ideas as he followed her into the kitchen and helped himself to two more bottles as she placed their empty ones in the bin. “I’ll take that as a yes.” She laughed as he handed her another one and he tilted his bottle to her with an expected eyebrow raise and she smirked and knocked the neck of his bottle with her own “Cheers” she laughed and the two took a sip, their eyes never leaving each others. Emily wandered away from him and went back to sit on the couch, curling back up and facing towards is previous seat which he reclaimed and felt nerves start to flitter around his stomach as he watched her mute the TV. “So, tell me. How are you doing? And I mean honestly.” She pressed and Hotch looked down at his hands like a child and twisted the bottle around before taking a swing and looking back into her expecting eyes. “Well, I mean, I lost her way before she left.” He started and scuffed his feet against her carpet, feeling embarrassed slightly. “But I wont lose my son. I wont, I just won’t.” He repeated it too many times for her to think it was just a statement and realized it was more of him convincing himself.

“Hey.” She started as she moved onto her knees and leant over, placing a hand on his knee. “Your son loves you. He’s going to need her dad. You’re an amazing father, Hotch. Hayley know’s that. She’s not going to keep him from you.” She said, hoping her voice was convincing enough as she rubbed around his knee slightly in a comforting manner. “Thank you..” Hotch muttered out, his eyes secured on her hand at his knee before he moved them to her face to find she was already staring at him. The two of them sat in silence with each other, their heads so close together Hotch could feel the way her breath was washing over his face and he tucked his lips into his mouth and turned away to take another, long, swing of his beer. “I should get going after this one.” He muttered and she nodded, moving back to sit on her feet and taking another drink. “Yeah, of course. Can I get you any food or anything, by the way? Sorry I’m only good for bad company and alcohol.” She half joked and Hotch quickly turned and looked at her, his brows tucked together. “You’re perfect company, Emily.” He stated firmly, and Emily tried to ignore the way her body reacted to him saying her first name. “Well, thanks.” She brushed it off, breathing a laugh and turned back to the silent TV. 

The two finished their second round of beers and Hotch reluctantly pulled himself away from the comfort of Emily’s lounge, watching her stand up as he did and he trudged towards her door. “I’m sorry I was such poor company. Thank you for having me.” He apologized and stopped a few feet from her door, turning around and facing her. “You were fine. With all things considered, you’re better company than I expected.” She laughed gently but then came the awkward silence as the two looked at each other. “Well.. Goodnight.” He nodded once, looking down at his feet as he mentally punched himself. She pressed her lips together and nodded with a slight smirk. “Goodnight, Hotch.” She reached past him, opening the door and watched as he stared at her for a few moments before moving out the door. “Thanks again.” He commented quietly as he passed her. Emily stood by the door and watched as he walked down the hallway towards the bank of elevators at the end. She was about to close the door before he turned around and the two of them made eye contact one more. 

“Goodnight, Emily.”  
“Goodnight, Hotch.” 

The elevator arrived at the same time she closed the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think / what you would like to see happen and I'll see if I can incorporate some of your idea's into my own


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